How good will Aaron Rodgers be for the Pittsburgh Steelers? His former Green Bay Packers teammate is not too optimistic.
Brady Poppinga, who played for the Packers for five years and was a rookie in Green Bay at the same time as Rodgers, does not have faith that Rodgers will be able to show his greatness with the Steelers this season. This has a lot to do with how he performed for the New York Jets last year.
“I went to the Jets-Patriots game last year, and the thing that was sticking out about Aaron that was different was simply, it’s almost this unwillingness — I wouldn’t say unwillingness, because he’s tough — it’s almost like the body is tired and doesn’t want to take the hit,” Poppinga said.
“There’s a lot of flinching, there’s a lot of, I would say his vision is going from reading the field to the rush, which isn’t usually normal for high-level quarterbacks. High-level quarterbacks are kind of able to feel the rush and then they’re able to then keep their eyes downfield.”
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Poppinga was Rodgers linebacker for half a decade and was part of the team that won the 2011 Super Bowl. He is pertaining to the ACL injury that Rodgers start at the start of his Jets era during his first season.
Rodgers will struggle he said and for that, they won’t be playoff contenders, a deviation from the earlier take made by NFL MVP Cam Newton that the Steelers will be scary in AFC due to Rodgers.
Aaron Rodgers going Tom Brady’s route
Rodgers has defied father time. Four-time Super Bowl winner Tom Brady was able to do it, too. However, father time caught up.
Poppinga believes that’s what’s happening with Rodgers now.
“It’s not that he’s being weak, it’s not that he’s not tough, it’s just that you’re getting tired,” Poppinga said.
“Tom Brady went through it. Brett Favre went through it, but everybody goes through it in the game of football.”
Rodgers will turn 41 this year. Brady won his last Super Bowl at the age of 43 with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Can Rodger delay the arrival of father time?
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